Our entire swim lesson curriculum was built on the idea that kiddos learn best when they’re having fun – what we call, The Science of SwimPlay®! We know that some serious learning happens when kids are inside our four walls, but at their age, learning truly is all around them! With so many new things to discover and so much growing to do, one of our favorite things to do with littles is to spend a few minutes relaxing and READING! 

In honor of Children’s Book Month, we thought it was the perfect time to share our favorite books, and how they help keep the learning and fun happening outside of our schools!

The Benefits of Reading with Kids

Not only is reading the perfect activity for rainy days or before bedtime, it’s the perfect activity for some learning that doesn’t really feel like learning! Reading with kids helps develop and strengthen language skills, and it even helps our kiddos learn a broader vocabulary with books that use words they don’t hear every day! 

Not to mention, it helps our children build empathy and understand feelings they may have a hard time expressing. It’s the perfect time to talk about big emotions and how we can handle them!

Our Favorite Books

We know that there are lots of books to choose from, and that each of them have special lessons and learnings that can help kids of all ages in different aspects of their lives. But, our very favorites are the ones that include our favorite fish Bubbles, and his friends! (OK, maybe we’re a little biased!) Each of our Goldfish Swim School books focuses on emotions and feelings that kiddos and their parents can talk through together to help kids understand and work through them!

The Fish Who Wouldn’t Swim

Our very first book, The Fish Who Wouldn’t Swim, stars our mascot Bubbles! Bubbles has a fear of the water and takes some encouraging words from his friends to dip a fin in and give the water a try. Through swim lessons, Bubbles gets to practice overcoming his worries and becomes a natural fish in the water! This book is perfect for nervous swimmers that need a little extra encouragement and support around swim lessons. It’s important to remind kiddos that their emotions and nervousness about the water is totally normal, and just like Bubbles, they can overcome it!

It’s Time for Swim School

Another great read for littles is It’s Time for Swim School! This one follows Bubbles and his closest friends as they each express and work through their emotions. It gives great examples that kiddos can relate to – like Jitt and his anxiety about swim lessons or Freeya who learns to be flexible and adapt to changes like a new swim instructor! Each of Bubbles’ friends can express themselves and share their emotions, a great chance for parents to talk to kids about their emotions and work together to understand them and build empathy for others!

Bubbles’ Golden Adventure

A read for our adventurous kiddos! Bubbles’ Golden Adventure follows our favorite fish and his besties as they use each of their unique traits and characteristics to accomplish something BIG as a team. They practice working together to reach their goal of finding the treasure on their treasure hunt, all while learning that traits like adaptability, going with the flow, and even anxiety can be a strength. This one is perfect for helping kids understand how they and their friends or classmates can come together to achieve big things!

Ryan Goes for GOLDfish 

Our Ryan Goes for GOLDfish book features one of our favorite Olympic swimmers, Ryan Murphy! Ryan, alongside Bubbles and friends, trains for his biggest swim competition! This book is a great story time choice for kiddos that gives an emphasis on working hard, being resilient, celebrating all of life’s milestones, and swimming towards their goals!

The ABCs of Swimming

Ok, so this might not be one of OUR books – but it’s still one of our fin-faves! Authored by a lifelong swimmer and Goldfish Swim School – Livingston mom, Kelly McKeston, The ABCs of Swimming dives into all things swimming and water safety in a style our kiddos know best – the ABCs! 

Kelly started this book as a child with her father, a college swim coach, aquatics director and aquatic fitness author. Following his death, Kelly stored the book away until she became a parent herself. It wasn’t until then, fueled by her kiddos’ passion for swimming, that she finished writing their story. 

The ABCs of Swimming brings to life a deep passion for swimming and water safety, a mission we’re proud to support and share with our swimmers each and every day! Kelly also donates $1 for every book sold to the USA Swimming Foundation, so that makes her not only one of our favorite authors, but also one of our favorite Wavemakers for Water Safety, too!

We love to read, and we especially love to share our favorite friends with kiddos and their parents. We know that quality time spent with kiddos and a good book is so precious, and we hope our favorite stories make their way into it!